Distractions pt10 - Well, that escalated quickly...

There have been a lot of times over the last 3 years when I've made a choice to post here while absolutely refusing to acknowledge the outside world. While we don't exist or create things in a vacuum, I have always wanted this blog to focus attention on the emotional rollercoaster of making stuff, and to stay away from the deluge of topical content created elsewhere on the internet.

And yet, this week threw all the rules out of the window.

We have gone from a fairly clear timeline on finishing and moving in to the house, to something where (in my mind at least) we can't see two days ahead. The builders are making astonishing progress, but the house still looks like this:

At a minimum, the house is basically safe and sealed. I wasn't sure we would get there earlier this week. Next is the plasterers...

If work continues, I'll keep posting about it.

No photo of my future sewing space this week, I forgot to get one when we visited today.

On Monday night, both B and I were given the 'work from home' instruction from our employers. Eager to find a means of 'closing the door' on one another early on, we needed to rejig the house a bit. We hastily found a new spot to store the dishwasher, piled the demolition tools high in a corner and recommissioned my work area:

You can see that this leaves my sewing machine and overlocker accessible. And you know already that I stocked up my stash to see me through until 2021. Now I just need to find time amongst all of the virtual meetups to actually do some sewing...

First up: Burda 6875, version 2

You might get to see the 2019 projects at this rate

K

Distractions pt9 - The chimneys are out

The builders have smashed up the chimneys and taken them away.

Distractions pt8 - window shopping for a desk

One of the things that has given me angst about this fixer upper has been what my sewing space will look like. The water supply, the structural stuff, the electrics are all, to a certain extent, solvable and nothing special. There are experts and authorities who can help with them too. So, at this point I'm not that stressed about them (there's still time). The sewing space, however, boggles my mind and I have lost dozens of hours already trying to find the answer.

You will know that I'm quite particular about my sewing space:

• I've enjoyed having hanging space for patterns and works in progress.
• I now have a sewing machine and an overlocker, so it's nice to have a work surface where they can both live semi-permanently
• The idea of a semi-permanent and multifunctional space has always been important for me. The machines take priority, but it should be a workspace for other things as well.
• Light is the trickiest thing to get right. When my sewing space was underneath the loft bed, I never bothered to install better lighting, and it was often too dark. In my current lean-to, the sunlight in the summer puts the needle plate in the shade (even when the machine light is on). Natural light is somewhat of a commodity in Victorian terraces, and so I need to find a good artificial solution.
• Storage space is needed for frequently used supplies and for "stock". Different disciplines will life together here and so I need to take into account all shapes and sizes of item
• The stash cupboard needs a home. While it is technically storage space, it needs its own place amongst everything else
• The work surface needs to be the right working height. At the moment I use a rescued gate-leg table, but it is old and wobbly and I should allow it to rest. I like to stand for some tasks, and often sit on a bar stool for others. Bar stools are taller than regular chairs/benches so it can be quite uncomfortable to work at a regular-height table when on the stool.

So I'm still thinking about this workspace. There are bar tables available for sale on the internet (Ikea, Next and Amazon), but I don't need the complementary seating, they are probably flimsy and I don't think the work surface is the right size for my needs. I've been looking at DIY options too and am interested in either an Ana White design (with modifications) or a plywood design by a guy called Brad. The DIY desks have better flexibility for customisation and I will be able to dismantle the desk if need be. The DIY option will probably be cheaper as well - though I haven't done a thorough costing yet.

In the meantime, my future sewing space currently looks like this:

More soon

K

Distractions pt7 - untitled

My future sewing space has been taken over by the builders.

I quite like this. It feels like an odd form of poetic justice. Even during demolition, this corner is becoming the command centre for creativity. It is a hive for people who make stuff.

I won't tell the builders that though, they'll think I'm crazy.

Meanwhile, in my current sewing space:

This dishwasher is casually hanging out until the kitchen is ready for its appliances. I can't set up the table around the dishwasher so still no sewing here.

K

Distractions pt6 - Sewing Patterns

The first few years after I started sewing, I got hooked on Lladybird's blog posts where she would critique the latest season of Vogue releases. This was always a lot of fun and I loved her snark at the brand while it seemed to go through a phase of questionable design choices and bonkers photography. It also made me aware that quarterly pattern releases were A Thing. So now I browse the new collections periodically.

Whenever a new set of patterns comes out there is a delay before they reach the UK (it took nearly a year before V1951 appeared here). I fell in love with 2 recent releases.

V1645

V1672

I have the fabric to make them up, but one will be part of a wedding outfit on May. It depends whether I have enough brain space for the difficult pattern, or if I fall back on the simpler one. I can't wait to make these.

K

Distractions pt5 - Daydreaming about fabric

My next sewing space currently looks like this:

My current sewing space still looks like this:

But, with spring creeping up on us, I may still get a few sewing sessions in my beautiful little unheated lean-to before we move out. Maybe I should use some time for one last shoot too.

While I wait for this dry spell to end, I have been daydreaming and purchasing things. My emotions have been a bit haywire since we committed to this renovation, so any fabric (or pattern) I fall in love with has to pass the Seven-Day Test. If I'm honestly still pining for it after a week then I will probably buy it. This is good discipline against impulse buys, but the problem is that I'm pining for fabric more than usual!

In October 2019, I fell in love with the Atelier Brunette Stardust Forest Double Gauze fabric. We were dancing at Burwash Manor and that's where Backstitch has its shop. I didn't buy anything on the day, but I did watch a person accidentally knock over one of those thread display stands. I bought some on their online shop a week later.

In November 2019, I brought back some fabric from Japan. The Seven-Day Test didn't apply, but I did bring everything back with the intention of splitting it with KL and letting her choose her haul (as she did with the fabric from India). I ended up with:
A wonderful navy/sunshine yellow double-sided knit. One side is polka dots, and the other side is stripes:

An odd knit remnant that looks like it should have stretch, but doesn't. It has navy/forest green stripes of varying width:

A cherry blossom quilting cotton, just because:

A six-point star design in black and white:

Sometime in 2019, I discovered Fabworks. This might be the most dangerous site in my browser history. Gorgeous, good quality fabrics, nice prices - these are good qualities in a fabric shop. The danger lies in their limited time only, no-restocking, constant additions of tasty new fabrics policy. This is what got me hooked on Emma One Sock. But importing from the US was a good enough barrier to stop me buying. Unfortunately(?) Fabworks is based in the UK, and very very convenient to order from. In autumn(?) 2019 they launched their HoH collection and I snapped up a pink/white herringbone. It makes my heart race.

In Jan 2020, they had loads of a raspberry sateen going cheap (it would be rude not to) and for some reason I got some blue twill for a blazer (What are you doing Katrina?! ou don't have the time to make a blazer?! Finish your new Burda 6875 first!)

Oh, and then there's Stoff & Stil. I have been idly browsing their website for a few months now - its nice photography and seasonal catalogues make it a bit nicer than your basic crafting site. Don't ask what happened here...just...just don't ask.

I got some black jersey, hopefully for some vest tops and t-shirts (and maybe pants).

I got some star-print jersey to combine with my leftover glow in the dark jersey - new PJs for me at some point.

Some red crepe georgette and some green crepe georgette. I don't really understand this. I was (and still am) absolutely convinced that it is the best possible fabric for a particular upcoming project. I am also convinced that, because it's synthetic, I will be able to make some awesome machine-washable/easycare formalwear from it. But, for whatever reason, I resolutely and stubbornly don't like crepe. It passed the Seven-Day Test, so it's mine now.

Until next time,
K

Distractions pt4 - Treating the renovation like a sewing project

Sometimes I stare at our estate agent's floor plan and my 2D blocking sketches (I still haven't learnt CAD properly), and think of bagmaking.

It's not really like a garment project. With garments I can look at a pattern piece, understand its weird shape and tell you quite confidently where it should fit in.

With bagmaking, I've found, it's always about a series of interconnected and intelinked rectangles in a range of different materials. Some of the materials are near-identical. But with our house plan, I just see nonsense rectangles floating around on the screen - and I hope they'll fit in correctly. It's a lot like my experience of bagmaking.

What I do know is that labour and expertise are king. You can research and control materials and their costs, but the secret is in the people doing the work. I have probably mangled a lot of good fabrics, and ruined a lot of good projects in my time because I wasn't the right person working with it at that time. The same garment, in the same fabric will look completely different depending on the expertise of the person making it. The same is true in the renovation.

The other thing I know is that the main material is only a portion of the material expense. We have all learned through sewing that splurging on the fabric doesn't obviate the need to spend the money on thread, interfacing, patterns, closures, embellishments etc. Just because I've picked the carpet, doesn't mean I'm not spending any money on the underlay.

Can you tell I'm losing my mind a bit?

K